According to state senator Kevin Witkos, the bill to protect State lands from misuse will have a public hearing on Monday. Finally, a good Republican! I wrote the following, in case it is helpful to anyone.
As a 40 year resident of Connecticut, I thought state lands could never be appropriated for anything other than an environmental repository. In the past few years, I have seen state land being traded for airports, and attempts made to put gun firing ranges on them. I understand there have been other lands swaps. Since apparently it is not a solemn duty of Connecticut to protect its parks, I think there should be a State constitutional amendment to prevent these things from ever happening. In addition, increased funding to maintain these parts from encroachment by people, such as patrols to prevent dumping trash and yard debris and cleaning up what is already there , and destroying invasive species is important. .
Mr. Witkos suggests:
1) sent comments to GAETestimony at cga.ct.gov to submit your testimony on why CT land should be preserved and protected.
2) Your testimony can be as brief as you like. Just include your name and town. Refer to the bill as S.J. 36
3) Spread the word to others about this opportunity to support our environment!
Susanne Shrader